STERIS plc $STE Shares Sold by Copeland Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Copeland Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in STERIS plc by 7.5%, now holding approximately 192,911 shares valued at $46.3 million.
• Insider transactions include VP Renato Tamaro and CAO Karen L. Burton selling a combined 11,104 shares for nearly $2.7 million, with Tamaro's ownership decreasing by 30.73% and Burton's by 56.86%.
• STERIS plc announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.63 per share, with a current yield of 1.0%, and reported a net margin of 11.61% and earnings growth compared to last year.

Copeland Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of STERIS plc (NYSE:STE - Free Report) by 7.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 192,911 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock after selling 15,754 shares during the quarter. Copeland Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.20% of STERIS worth $46,341,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in STERIS by 3.5% in the first quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 1,611 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $365,000 after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in STERIS by 16.5% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 395 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $90,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in STERIS by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Taylor Frigon Capital Management LLC now owns 6,280 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $1,423,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. West Coast Financial LLC raised its position in STERIS by 3.9% during the first quarter. West Coast Financial LLC now owns 1,658 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock worth $376,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its holdings in STERIS by 0.9% during the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 6,999 shares of the medical equipment provider's stock valued at $1,586,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. 94.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Renato Tamaro sold 3,204 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $249.24, for a total value of $798,564.96. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 7,221 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,799,762.04. This represents a 30.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CAO Karen L. Burton sold 7,900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.73, for a total value of $1,909,667.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 5,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,448,929.62. The trade was a 56.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 18,709 shares of company stock worth $4,546,940 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.07% of the company's stock.

STERIS Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of STE opened at $242.35 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $242.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $235.12. The company has a quick ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 2.22 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market capitalization of $23.87 billion, a PE ratio of 37.11 and a beta of 1.01. STERIS plc has a 52-week low of $200.98 and a 52-week high of $253.00.

STERIS (NYSE:STE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The medical equipment provider reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.32 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.36 billion. STERIS had a net margin of 11.61% and a return on equity of 14.17%. STERIS's revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.03 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that STERIS plc will post 9.08 EPS for the current year.

STERIS Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 4th were paid a dividend of $0.63 per share. This represents a $2.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. This is a positive change from STERIS's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 4th. STERIS's payout ratio is 38.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on STE shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of STERIS from $276.00 to $295.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen raised STERIS from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, September 14th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on STERIS from $277.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 22nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, STERIS presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $273.50.

STERIS Profile

STERIS plc provides infection prevention products and services worldwide. It operates through four segments: Healthcare, Applied Sterilization Technologies, Life Sciences, and Dental. The Healthcare segment offers cleaning chemistries and sterility assurance products; automated endoscope reprocessing system and tracking products; endoscopy accessories, washers, sterilizers, and other pieces of capital equipment for the operation of a sterile processing department; and equipment used directly in the operating room, including surgical tables, lights, and connectivity solutions, as well as equipment management services.

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